5 Tips to Get a Long-Term-Care Insurer to Pay Up
What you need to know to get through the claims process smoothly.
A long-term-care insurance policy can help cover the costs of care in a nursing home, an assisted-living facility or at home. Follow these steps, and you’re more likely to get through the claims process smoothly.
1. Find out what triggers benefits. Most policies pay only if the patient needs help with at least two out of six activities of daily living (such as bathing or dressing) or there is evidence of cognitive impairment. But the requirements for making a claim vary. Work with your parent’s doctor to provide the information the insurer needs.
2. Find out about home-care requirements. If you plan to provide care at home for your parent, call the insurer to find out about requirements for payouts -- especially before you hire a caregiver to come into the home. Some insurers require home caregivers to be licensed or from an agency, for example. A few pay benefits even to relatives who provide care. Many insurers have care coordinators who can help you search for caregivers or facilities.
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
3. Understand the waiting period. Most policies have waiting periods of at least 60 days. However, some companies have a zero-day waiting period for home care but a longer waiting period for assisted living or nursing homes. Others count every calendar day from the time your parent met the requirement for needing help with activities of daily living or the cognitive-impairment requirement, even if he or she didn’t receive care every day. Still others count only the days on which your parent received care -- which can extend the waiting period. To speed things up, you may want to have a caregiver come in for a shorter period for more days rather than a longer period for fewer days.
4. Keep track of the paperwork. That includes forms you submit and communications with the facility and the long-term-care insurer. Sometimes payouts are delayed because of paperwork issues. Keep records of all phone calls and dates that you or the doctor or the facility sent information, and follow up to make sure the paperwork has been received. Also ask your insurer or agent if there is anything you can do to streamline the paperwork; some insurers will arrange direct billing between the nursing home and insurer.
5. Appeal a denied claim. If you have a dispute, work through the insurer’s appeals process, and contact your state insurance department for help.
To continue reading this article
please register for free
This is different from signing in to your print subscription
Why am I seeing this? Find out more here
As the "Ask Kim" columnist for Kiplinger's Personal Finance, Lankford receives hundreds of personal finance questions from readers every month. She is the author of Rescue Your Financial Life (McGraw-Hill, 2003), The Insurance Maze: How You Can Save Money on Insurance -- and Still Get the Coverage You Need (Kaplan, 2006), Kiplinger's Ask Kim for Money Smart Solutions (Kaplan, 2007) and The Kiplinger/BBB Personal Finance Guide for Military Families. She is frequently featured as a financial expert on television and radio, including NBC's Today Show, CNN, CNBC and National Public Radio.
-
Eight Easy Ways to Save Money Without Compromising Your Lifestyle
Saving money can be as simple as a quick phone call.
By Kiplinger Advisor Collective Published
-
Five Ways to Save Big On Your Phone Bill When Traveling Abroad
Traveling internationally and want to save cash? Here are five smart ways to save big on your phone bill.
By Kathryn Pomroy Published
-
403(b) Contribution Limits for 2024
retirement plans Teachers and nonprofit workers can contribute more to a 403(b) retirement plan in 2024 than they could in 2023.
By Jackie Stewart Published
-
Roth IRA Contribution Limits for 2024
Roth IRAs Roth IRA contribution limits have gone up for 2024. Here's what you need to know.
By Jackie Stewart Published
-
Four Tips for Renting Out Your Home on Airbnb
real estate Here's what you should know before listing your home on Airbnb.
By Miriam Cross Published
-
Five Ways to a Cheap Last-Minute Vacation
Travel It is possible to pull off a cheap last-minute vacation. Here are some tips to make it happen.
By Vaishali Varu Last updated
-
How Much Life Insurance Do You Need?
insurance Instead of relying on rules of thumb, you’re better off taking a systematic approach to figuring your life-insurance needs.
By Kimberly Lankford Published
-
When Is Amazon Prime Day?
Amazon Prime In 2023 Amazon had two Prime Day events — one in July and another, called Big Deal Days, in October. We expect 2024 to follow the same schedule.
By Bob Niedt Last updated
-
How to Shop for Life Insurance in 3 Easy Steps
insurance Shopping for life insurance? You may be able to estimate how much you need online, but that's just the start of your search.
By Kaitlin Pitsker Published
-
5 Ways to Shop for a Low Mortgage Rate
Becoming a Homeowner Rates are high this year, but you can still find an affordable loan.
By Daniel Bortz Published